By Lora Benson
The rise in the number of female investors in the Saudi stock market and the commitment to growing its financial services talent and professionalism are testament to the Kingdom’s successful rollout of its Vision 2030, says CISI CEO Tracy Vegro OBE.
The CISI CEO visit to the Kingdom coincides with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) reporting the number of female investors in the Saudi stock market has reached an historic high of 1.72 million during the first quarter of 2025.
Ms Vegro will be representing the educational charity and global professional financial services body, the CISI, during a visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in October. She is a speaker at the Financial Academy Forum of Expertise #Innovate_to_Enable 8th October in Riyadh.
During her visit to the Kingdom last year, Ms Vegro signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with The Financial Academy, marking the beginning of a collaboration in which The Financial Academy offers the CISI Ethical AI Professional Assessment to financial professionals in Saudi Arabia.
Ms Vegro will also be meeting with CISI partners and members in Riyadh including long-standing partner, the Capital Markets Authority.
Ms Vegro said: “We are honoured to be working with our Saudi partners to equip their finance professionals and our members with the knowledge and skills they need, in a continuing commitment to raising standards across the Kingdom’s financial services profession. The UK’s professional standards and educational services are a great export success story and many CISI qualified professional are operating in the Kingdom.
“It is particularly exciting to see the success of women's empowerment efforts under Vision 2030 and the latest report from the CMA shows the growing importance of women’s influence in the financial services market. Women investors are key to the Kingdom’s economic and social transformation and integral to financial inclusion. The CMA’s dedication to skills, professionalism and standards across the sector will continue to confirm the Kingdom as an important international financial services centre and UK trading partner.”
UK Trade Minister Chris Bryant said: "Saudi Arabia is an important trading partner for the UK. This visit reflects our strong collaboration in financial services, aligning with the UK's Industrial and Trade Strategy priorities for the sector and Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030.
“The CISI’s international partnerships are a good example of how the UK's globally respected qualifications can be exported, to enable skilled UK professionals to deliver expert services with confidence and credibility in overseas markets.”
Last month the UK government announced a new joint UK-Saudi investment of £360 million, creating 180 new jobs in both nations. The GREAT FUTURES summit provided the opportunity for the UK and Saudi Arabia to focus on areas of collaboration, under the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy, of which financial services is a key growth driving sector, and Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.